Robert Hyde signed the trust deed as senior vice president of Alco, a “privately held real estate firm specializing in the development, financing and management of conventional and government-assisted apartment communities,” according to the company’s website. The loan is a refinancing of a similar trust deed filed in 2010.

Built in 1973, the 208-unit apartment complex sits on 12.7 acres at the northwest corner of Madewell Street and Dellwood Avenue. The Shelby County Assessor of Property, which lists the address as 1146 Dellwood Ave., shows a 2013 appraisal of the complex as $3.8 million.

The property is under a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) program through the Shelby County Health, Education and Housing Facility Board.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Daily News staff

International Paper Subsidiary Fined $3.3 Million for Spill

A federal judge has ordered Temple Inland, a subsidiary of Memphis-based International Paper, to pay $3.3 million and serve two years of probation for polluting the Pearl River in 2011 with illegal discharges from its Bogalusa paper mill that killed thousands of fish.

Equipment malfunctioned at the mill, which makes containerboard, allowing an untreated plume of a substance known as black liquor to flow into the Pearl River. Black liquor isn’t toxic, but it sucked up all the oxygen in the river as it decayed, suffocating more than 160,000 fish and more than 430,000 freshwater mussels.

An International Paper spokesman said Thursday the company has made major improvements at the Bogalusa plant since acquiring Temple Inland 2012.

“We have invested considerable financial and human resources into improving the mill and correcting the issues that affected it prior to the purchase,” Thomas J. Ryan said in an email.

Those included infrastructure improvements and the hiring of new personnel, including an environmental scientist to lead the renovation of the wastewater treatment system, Ryan said.

U.S. Attorney Dana Boente’s office said U.S. District Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle ordered the company Wednesday to pay $1.2 million in restitution and a criminal fine of $1.5 million “for the harm caused by the negligent discharge to the Pearl River and its tributaries,” including the loss of the protected species Gulf sturgeon and other aquatic life, Boente’s office said.

The company pleaded guilty in February to a two-count bill of information charging it with misdemeanor counts of negligent violation of the Clean Water Act and the Refuge Act.

– The Associated Press

Kyle Files Bill to Create Grizzlies License Plates

Tennessee state Sen. Jim Kyle has filed a bill that would create a Memphis Grizzlies specialty license plate.

If approved, the plate would support the Memphis Grizzlies Charitable Foundation, which supports youth sports and mentoring programs in Shelby County.

To get it done, Kyle’s office needs to hear from fans and anyone who’d want a plate.

Creating a specialty plate requires legislative approval, as well as 1,000 pre-orders. Anyone interested in pre-ordering a plate can email Kyle’s legislative office at sen.jim.kyle@capitol.tn.gov.

The Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators already have similar plates.

– Andy Meek

Lawsuit Seeks Restoration of Confederate Park Names

A group of nine Memphians called “Citizens To Save Our Parks” is taking the city of Memphis and the Memphis City Council to court over the council’s February decision to temporarily rename three Confederate-themed parks.

The Shelby County Chancery Court lawsuit filed Wednesday, May 29, contends the mayor’s office through the parks services director has the authority to rename parks, not the council. And the lawsuit, assigned to Chancellor Kenny Armstrong, also says the council resolution violates a state law signed into law after the council acted.

The lawsuit filed by Nashville attorney Douglas E. Jones seeks a declaratory judgment from Armstrong that would make the council’s actions “null, void and invalid” and restore any signage taken down in the parks by the administration.

The administration of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. took down the signage before the council passed the resolution and earlier it removed a stone marker paid for and placed in Forrest Park by the group Sons of Confederate Veterans.

The group claims it had permission from the city for the marker bearing the name of the park near the curb of Union Avenue in front of the statue of Confederate General, Ku Klux Klan leader and slave trader Nathan Bedford Forrest.

The lawsuit claims that in a 2005 legal opinion, City Council attorney Allan Wade told council members only the mayor could change the name of a park since the city abolished the park commission that was at one time the regulatory authority for parks.

But the council resolution passed in February to rename Forrest, Confederate and Jefferson Davis parks was backed by Wharton.

– Bill Dries

Orion CEO Elected To Credit Union Association

Daniel Weickenand, CEO of Orion Federal Credit Union, has joined the board of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions.

He’s been elected to a one-year term and will be eligible to run for a full three-year term next year.

Weickenand is the first elected official from Tennessee since 1990 and will begin his term following the close of the NAFCU annual business meeting in July in Boston.

– Andy Meek

St. Jude Associate Named Pharmacists Fellow

James Hoffman, an associate member in the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, has been named a fellow by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists for excellence in pharmacy practices.

Hoffman is an expert in national drug shortages and also focuses on medication safety.

He led a national survey of oncology pharmacists published in March that found drug shortages are taking a heavy toll on cancer patients, including higher costs and treatment delays.

The 2013 fellows will be honored in June during the ASHP Summer Meeting and Exhibition in Minneapolis.

– Jennifer Johnson Backer

American Athletic Conference Unveils New Logo

The new athletic conference for the University of Memphis, American Athletic Conference, has a new look to go with its new name.

The conference formerly known as the Big East released its logo on Thursday.

“It’s a very important step in the rebranding of our conference and the reinvention of the American Athletic Conference,” Commissioner Mike Aresco said during a conference call.

The big block blue A with a red star at its center is part of the rebranding of the new conference, which will begin competition this fall.

“It’s a bold symbol and an elegant design,” Aresco said.

The American will consist of Rutgers, Louisville, South Florida, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Temple, Central Florida, Memphis, Houston and SMU next year.

Rutgers and Louisville will leave after the 2013 season and Tulane, Tulsa and East Carolina will join in 2014. Navy is set to become the 12th member in 2015.

– The Associated Press

Fire Marshal’s Office Gives Hotel Safety Tips

The state’s fire marshal’s office is sharing some hotel safety tips for Tennessee travelers this summer.

Commerce and Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak says hotels and motels become a home away from home for travelers, and it’s important for them to become familiar with new surroundings and have a plan in place should an emergency arise.

Some safety suggestions include choosing a hotel equipped with both smoke alarms and fire sprinklers, reading the escape plan posted in the room, and keeping a flashlight near the bed.